Govt says 1,340 'Made in India' ventilators delivered under PM CARES
Nearly 3,000 of the 50,000 ‘Made in India’ ventilators sanctioned under the PM CARES fund to help COVID-19 patients have been manufactured and over 1,300 have been delivered to various states, an official statement said on Tuesday (June 23).
On May 14, the PM CARES Fund Trust had decided to allocate ₹3,100 crore for the fight against the COVID-19 pandemic and the amount was to be used, among other things, to purchase ventilators and caring for migrant workers. Out of the ₹3,100 crore, nearly ₹2,000 crore was earmarked for the purchase of 50,000 ‘Made in India’ ventilators.
“So far 2,923 ventilators have been manufactured, out of which 1,340 ventilators have already been delivered to the States/UTs,” the statement said. By the end of this month, an additional 14,000 ventilators will be delivered to all the states and UTs.
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The prominent recipients include Maharashtra (275), Delhi (275), Gujarat (175), Bihar (100), Karnataka (90), Rajasthan (75), it said. Out of the 50,000 ventilators, 30,000 are being manufactured by Bharat Electronics Ltd, a government undertaking.
The remaining 20,000 ventilators are being manufactured by AgVa Healthcare (10,000), AMTZ Basic (5,650), AMTZ High End (4,000) and Allied Medical (350), the statement said.
Referring to the welfare of migrant workers, it said ₹1,000 crore has already been released to states and UTs for welfare of the migrant labourers. Several special trains have ferried lakhs of migrant workers back to their home states as they were unwilling to stay in cities citing an uncertain future amid the pandemic. Several of them have walked hundreds of kilometres to return to their native place.
The distribution of funds is based on the weightage of the population of the state as per the 2011 Census – 50 per cent weightage, number of positive COVID-19 cases as on date 40 per cent weightage, and equal share —10 per cent weightage for all states to ensure basic minimum sum for all. The funds were to be used for arranging accommodation, food, medical treatment and transportation of migrants.
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According to the statement, the main recipients of the grant are Maharashtra (₹181 crore), Uttar Pradesh (₹103 crore), Tamil Nadu (₹83 crore), Gujarat (₹66 crore), Delhi (₹55 crore), West Bengal (₹53 crore), Bihar (₹51 crore), Madhya Pradesh (₹50 crore), Rajasthan (₹50 crore) and Karnataka (₹34 crore).
Prime Minister Narendra Modi had announced creation of the PM’s Citizen Assistance and Relief in Emergency Situations Fund (PM-CARES) where people can contribute to help the government fight against coronavirus and similar “distressing situations”.
The trust was formed on March 27 and is headed by the prime minister. The other ex-officio members of the trust are the defence minister, the home minister, and the finance minister.
